The problem with blogger is that a group of people with an ax to grind can report any blog as spam and after enough complaints, it’s automatically suspended until a real live human being can get around to examining it. If enough complaints are registered with blogger, you might get a response within 5 days but it takes a concerted effort. This is a huge problem with blogger and something google needs to get a handle on.

Regardless who is at fault, this shutting down of free speech is disturbing.

-By Warner Todd Huston

It looks like Google has officially joined the Barack Obama campaign and decided that its contribution would be to shut down any blog on the Google owned Blogspot.com blogging system that has an anti-Obama message. Yes, it sure seems that Google has begun to go through its many thousands of blogs to lock out the owners of anti-Obama blogs so that the noObama message is effectively squelched. Thus far, Google has terminated the access by blog owners to 7 such sites and the list may be growing. Boy, it must be nice for Barack Obama to have an ally powerful enough to silence his opponents like that!

It isn’t just conservative sites that Google’s Blogger platform is eliminating. For instance, www.comealongway.blogspot.com has been frozen and this one is a Hillary supporting site. The operator of Come a Long Way has a mirror site off the Blogspot platform and has today posted this notice:

I used to have a happy internet home on Blogger: www.comealongway.blogspot.com. Then on Wednesday night, June 25, I received the following e-mail:

Dear Blogger user,

This is a message from the Blogger team.

Your blog, at http://comealongway.blogspot.com/, has been identified as a potential spam blog. You will not be able to publish posts to your blog until we review your site and confirm that it is not a spam blog.

Sincerely,

The Blogger Team

It turns out that there is an interesting pattern where it concerns the blogs that Google’s Blogspot team have summarily locked down on their service. They all belong to the Just Say No Deal coalition, a group of blogs that are standing against the Obama campaign. It seems the largest portion of these blogs are Hillary supporting blogs, too.

All I can say is, WOW! If Google is willing to abuse its power like this even against fellow leftists, what does it plan against conservatives, the folks Google hates even more!?

Here is a list of the Blogspot blogs that have been frozen by Google thus far:

The "60 Minutes" reporter and former swimsuit model apparently courted two beaus while she was in Baghdad, and has been labeled a homewrecker for allegedly destroying the marriage of a civilian contractor there, sources said.

Passions got so hot in the combat zone that one of her lovers, Joe Burkett, brawled in a Baghdad "safe house" with her other paramour, CNN war reporter Michael Ware, a source said.

The wife of Burkett, a US Embassy worker, claims the sultry 37-year-old correspondent seduced him while bullets flew overhead.

Burkett's wife, Kimberly, also accuses Logan of teaming up with him to take her 3-year-old daughter away, according to the source.

A close pal of Logan, who confirmed the allegations to The Post, said Burkett's marriage to Kimberly was already finished six months before they sparked up a relationship.

"She is not the cause of their divorce," the friend told The Post yesterday.

"It was going to happen."

The pal also said Logan was particularly hurt by the comments because she had met Kimberly Burkett and thought the two were "friendly."

Kimberly filed for divorce from her husband in January in a court near their hometown of Fredericksburg, Texas.

The husband, 36, and wife, 32, are now battling over custody of toddler Ashley.

Pals of Logan said that the divorce attorney is just grandstanding by dragging the rising television star into the Texas couple's split.

"Lara is not part of their divorce proceedings," a friend said.

"The simple truth is that this was a marriage that was breaking up. And that's the bottom line."

As for the other claims, pals admitted that Logan had a one-time fling with CNN reporter Ware - but denied that there was any sort of fight between him and Burkett in Baghdad.

"There was no screaming match," the pal said.

Tale of the love fight first broke on the freerepublic.com in December.

The scandal comes just as the former model's journalistic career is starting to skyrocket.

It's a stunning turn of events for the respected journalist, who once told The Washington Post that she "has no social life."

Yesterday, CBS announced, without a hint of irony, that she was given a new Washington assignment as chief foreign-affairs correspondent. She joined the network in 2002 and became a "60 Minutes" correspondent in 2006.

The network touted her as the only American reporter who was in Baghdad when the United States invaded in 2003.

Logan was born in Durban, South Africa. She has been going through a divorce from her husband of nine years, Jason Siemon, a former European-league basketball player.

From Obama's Cold, Dead Hands??

Thursday, June 26, 2008Obama backs D.C. gun ban struck down by Supreme CourtIf you're on the fence about the 2008 presidential race, Thursday's Supreme Court ruling on the Washington, D.C., gun ban, should help you make up your mind.The four liberal members of the Supreme Court, voted to uphold the ban despite the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of the "right to bear arms."If Barack Obama is elected president, he will appoint more liberals to the court and a liberal Supreme Court will start taking away Constitutional rights guaranteed to all Americans by the Founding Fathers.John McCain has promised to appoint judges who will uphold the Constitution instead of trying to legislate from the bench.So the 2008 election comes down to which person you want appointing Supreme Court justices. Barack Obama would use the court to further his liberal agenda. John McCain would nominate judges who've actually read the Constitution and would leave legislating to elected state legislatures and Congress.Read more about Sen. Obama's oppose to gun rights at the link below.

Leaders of the Black Cultural Council say volunteers and the black community felt “humiliated” after two health department food inspectors threatened to put a stop to a Juneteenth celebration over questions about food preparation for 600 free barbecue sandwiches.

Council President Jo Ann Davenport-Littleton said health inspectors told them it was illegal for the group to serve the sandwiches because they were not prepared at the site where they were served.

Gino Solla, the county’s top health official, said state law prohibits any food service operation from having food prepared in a private home for public consumption.

“I hate that it happened,” Davenport-Littleton said in a story for today’s edition of the Odessa American. “I wanted people to go away talking about how great the celebration was this year. All you heard was ‘They were going to deny us barbecue. Here we are in modern-day slavery again.’ “

Puff Daddy/P. Diddy’s “Obama or die!” chant at the Black Entertainment Television awards last night, which I noted earlier this morning, has inspired our talented friend and michellemalkin.com commenter Tennyson Hayes.

Go on and spank that pretentious bad boy, y’all!But better watch out for Obama’s Huffpo humor police. They are not amused.***

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Another Diverse Thorn in My Side!

Gentle readers,have you seen or heard the latest advertisements for Williamsburg, Virginia, or as they now call the whole region: "America's Historic Triangle?"

Gone are the days of trumpeting its place as one of our colonial starting points.

The messages of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness have been replaced by,...

"DIVERSITY!!!"

What the,....???

"Diversity," that liberal catchphrase excuse for everything immoral or illegal in this country!

I don't think the Williamsburg settlers were thinking about "diversity" when they left a continent ruled by brain-damaged, overlappingly-inbred nobles. (Hey, that would explain the madness of King George III, huh?)

Diversity? Yeah, those settlers were so concerned with diversity, the minorities they brought with them were used in slavery and the Native Americans locals were pushed aside by the Europeans.

Diversity? OK,..I'm sure those settlers gladly accepted every buggerer, carpet muncher and rider of the Hershey Highway in their midst!!! Hell, further north, some of those people were burned at the stake as witches!

No folks,..the PR spinners down there in Williamsburg are adding the phrase "diversity" to their pamphlets to attract these liberal soccer moms and socialist college dons to drive their hybrids and Prii (plural of Prius) down to Virginia and spend some summer vacation dollars! Plain and simple.

Monday, June 23, 2008

Carlin George, Peace in Rest!

LOS ANGELES — Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television. Some People Are Stupid. Stuff. People I Can Do Without.

George Carlin, who died of heart failure Sunday at 71, leaves behind not only a series of memorable routines, but a legal legacy: His most celebrated monologue, a frantic, informed riff on those infamous seven words, led to a Supreme Court decision on broadcasting offensive language.

The counterculture hero's jokes also targeted things such as misplaced shame, religious hypocrisy and linguistic quirks — why, he once asked, do we drive on a parkway and park on a driveway?

The TrekMedic is heartbroken:

My idol has passed away. Carlin's humor was the basis for much of my Star Yecch!-related material.

No matter what he said, it always struck a nerve or enlightened some kernel of the truth with everyone.

Obama Sleeps With the Communists, too!

At the Official Barack Obama Blog Site: The Revolutionary Communist Party

Mon, Jun 23, 2008 at 9:16:55 am PST

I think we have the jawdropper of the day, as the official web site of a candidate for president of the United States contains a blog posted by a follower of World Can’t Wait, linking to an article by the chairman of the Revolutionary Communist Party.

And we know that Obama campaign administrators are monitoring the site. Notice that it’s been posted since May 26th.

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Teach Me to Fish and,...

We've seen the obligatory and ubiquitous visit by the C-in-C, with promises of federal aid in the offing.

I'm sure when the waters recede, we'll be witness to devastation on par with New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward.

And that's where the commonalities stop, ladies and gentlemen!

Where are the scenes of people scrambling to leave the damaged areas?

Where are the scenes of bodies floating in fetid waters?

Where are the irate people alternately pleading for help and blaming others for their misfortunes?

Why are we seeing the locals standing their ground and filling sandbag after sandbag to save their communities?

Could it truly be that there is a difference between those who have been raised to help themselves and those raised to expect the government to help?

Could this explain why the MSM hasn't cast its distorted eye on this tragedy and used it as another vector to embarrass the Bush administration? (Many of those help others/less government values in the Midwest are the backbone of the Republican Party)

DoubleStandarddradnatSelbuoD?

Cynthia Tuckeredits the opinion section of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution

During the late 20th century, human-rights campaigns led by Western progressives helped liberate two nations in southern Africa from brutal whites-only rule. In 1980, the apartheid regime of Rhodesia gave way to a black-led Zimbabwe. And in 1994, the first multiracial elections in South Africa delivered the presidency to a black man, the longtime antiapartheid activist Nelson Mandela.

In the years since, the two nations have traveled very different paths. South Africa has enjoyed stability, a free press, international investment, an independent judiciary and democratic elections - helped by the graceful exit of Mandela, who retired after one term. While the nation still struggles with poverty, underdevelopment and an AIDS epidemic, it has become a model for multiracial democracy on the African continent.

Zimbabwe, by contrast, has spiraled downward into disaster. Thirty years ago, the nation was stable and productive, a net exporter of food blessed with a small class of educated black professionals ready to form its governmental bureaucracy. Now, Zimbabwe is beset by a thuggish regime that has ushered in starvation, hyper-inflation, rampant unemployment, political oppression and corruption.

Though Mugabe has labored mightily to blame others - including the dwindling population of white Zimbabweans and Western human-rights activists - for his nation's problems, Zimbabwe's voters have finally determined he needs to go. His opponent, Morgan Tsvangirai, led the opening round of voting in March elections.

Now, Mugabe's henchmen have resorted to killing to make certain the runoff election, scheduled for June 27, is anything but free and fair. Tsvangirai has been harassed and detained repeatedly by police. The wives of other opposition leaders have been butchered and burned alive. Mugabe's police even seized food sent to schoolchildren by international donors, giving it only to those who promised to vote for him.

His followers maim and murder their opponents and starve children, but few black Americans notice. Why? Why do we ignore the transgressions of black African tyrants while assailing those of white tyrants?

Former U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young is among those who still manage to see more morality than malice in Mugabe's rule. "Americans cannot be rational about Mugabe," Young said. "We've always miscast Mugabe. He's a fundamentalist Roman Catholic. He doesn't steal."

Young traces Zimbabwe's troubles back more than 30 years, to the failure of the United States and Britain to fund land-reform efforts as generously as promised.

Similarly, Nicole Lee, head of TransAfrica Forum, a Washington-based human-rights group founded by black Americans, points to "a larger context" that includes the failure of Western nations to fund programs to grant farmland to poor black Zimbabweans. She, too, says that Americans shouldn't "demonize" Mugabe.

There's just one problem with that: Mugabe has become a demon.

Here and there, a courageous human-rights activist sees the problem clearly and has the guts to say so. Last week, Desmond Tutu called for Mugabe's resignation. "Mugabe began so well more than 30 years ago. We all had such high hopes," the former Anglican archbishop said. "But his regime has turned into a horrendous nightmare. He should stand down."

U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D., Ga.) said he supported a more forceful response to Mugabe's tyranny. "Just because he's a black leader of an African nation doesn't mean that we can afford to be silent," he said.

It may be that Americans can do little to influence Mugabe's course. If he is willing to starve his people, he is probably immune to public condemnation. But those committed to civil and human rights have a duty to register their disgust for Mugabe's madness, as loudly and as readily as they did for apartheid's brutality.

By-y-y-y Yo-u-u-ur-r-r Com-m-ma-a-and,...

TOKYO - She is big-busted, petite, very friendly, and she runs on batteries.

A Japanese firm has produced a 15-inch tall robotic girlfriend that kisses on command, to go on sale in September for around $175, with a target market of lonely adult men.

Using her infrared sensors and battery power, the diminutive damsel named "EMA" puckers up for nearby human heads, entering what designers call its "love mode."

"Strong, tough and battle-ready are some of the words often associated with robots, but we wanted to break that stereotype and provide a robot that's sweet and interactive," said Minako Sakanoue, a spokeswoman for the maker, Sega Toys.

"She's very lovable and though she's not a human, she can act like a real girlfriend."

EMA, which stands for Eternal Maiden Actualization, can also hand out business cards, sing and dance, with Sega hoping to sell 10,000 in the first year.

Japan, home to almost half the world's 800,000 industrial robots, envisions a $10-billion market for artificial intelligence in a decade.

The TrekMedic boots up and says:

Wait,..didn't the Cylons already do this?? (Related Reuters story HERE!)

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Heimlich, Anyone??

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- After weeks of speculation that his job was in jeopardy, Willie Randolph finally got fired by the New York Mets while most fans were sleeping.

Randolph was let go in the middle of the night Tuesday, 2½ months into a disappointing season that has followed the team's colossal collapse last September.

Bench coach Jerry Manuel takes over on an interim basis for Randolph, who led the Mets to within one win of the 2006 World Series. They got off to a strong start again last year but plummeted down the stretch and have been unable to rebound.

A preseason favorite to win the NL pennant, the $138 million Mets (34-35) had won two in a row when Randolph was dismissed early Tuesday morning -- making him the first big league manager to get fired this season.

Pitching coach Rick Peterson and first-base coach Tom Nieto also were cut loose in an enormous overhaul that was revealed in a fact-of-the-matter news release at a stunning time -- about 3:15 a.m. ET, nearly two hours after New York's 9-6 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

Ken Oberkfell, the club's manager at Triple-A New Orleans, and Dan Warthen, pitching coach for the Zephyrs, will join the major league staff along with Luis Aguayo, a Mets field coordinator.

The TrekMedic gleefully chuckles:

So,..blowing a 7-game lead with 17 to go wasn't a fluke? Wonder what motor-mouth Bill Wagner will say now,...

As an example, he cites the iconic photo of John F. Kennedy Jr.'s salute at his father's funeral. Stan Stearns took the photo for LIFE, but its copyright is now owned by Corbis, an intellectual-property asset company created by Bill Gates.

To reproduce the photo in Ivey's book cost $330, prompting him to ask, "Is our right to cultural heritage fulfilled if we're allowed to buy our way into access to the past?"

The book is provocative, but it's more philosophical than politically practical.

Ivey drafts a "Cultural Bill of Rights" but doesn't explain how it would be enforced.

He's disappointed by the Internet, which "at first looked all wild and woolly: new people, new ideas, no rules."

"But today it looks less like a freewheeling frontier and more like the Upper West Side of Manhattan — all high-priced rentals and out-of-reach condos."

Ivey's call to arms seems more bureaucratic than artistic.

He proposes a federal department of cultural affairs, a presidential commission and congressional hearings.

The TrekMedic ponders:

Straight from the Clintonian Liberals' playbook: Only the government can decide what's good for you; shame on corporate greed; free speech = offend everyone.

ST. LOUIS -- The Phillies needed about five minutes on Friday to turn a baseball game into their own version of Home Run Derby.

There was a harmless beginning, as Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino were retired by Cardinals starter Todd Wellemeyer. But then came a sudden, stunning power show that sent the Phils merrily on their way to a 20-2 victory at Busch Stadium.

Chase Utley? Gone. Ryan Howard? Gone. Pat Burrell? Gone.

Before some of the late-arriving fans had settled into their seats, Philadelphia had hit three consecutive homers in the first, setting the tone for what would be a comfortable night for right-hander Kyle Kendrick.

The three consecutive homers marked just the seventh time in franchise history that the Phils had accomplished that feat. The last time it happened was May 18, 2004, against the Dodgers.

The Phillies added another memorable offensive inning in the fourth, when they put nine runs on the board. That rally began with a double by Kendrick, who wound up with two hits in the inning.

It was that kind of wild offensive night for the Phillies, who received two homers from Howard, the St. Louis product, and was reminiscent of May 25-26, when the Phils put 15 runs on the board against the Astros and came back with 20 the next night against the Rockies.

"I'm glad I'm on this side," Kendrick said. "We have a great offense."

Sometimes, hot turns into scalding. The Cardinals certainly felt the burn in the series opener.

The St. Louis frustration was symbolized in the eighth, when reliever Russ Springer was ejected by home-plate umpire Larry Vanover after hitting Howard. Cardinals manager Tony La Russa was ejected for voicing his displeasure. Then Rudy Seanez threw a pitch behind Brendan Ryan in the bottom of the eighth, and St. Louis third-base coach Jose Oquendo was ejected for arguing about why Seanez was allowed to remain in the game.

Howard, who finished with two homers after getting to sleep in his own bed, wasn't passing judgment on whether Springer had thrown at him in the eighth.

"I'm not going to look into it," Howard said. "I don't know if it was intentional or not. If it was, it was. It's over. We'll go out and play tomorrow."

Asked if he thought Springer had intentionally hit Howard, Manuel said: "Ryan stands way off the plate. He hit him. That's all I've got to say."

Even after several trips back to St. Louis, Howard still gets a kick out of putting on the uniform in his hometown.

"Playing before family and friends is relaxing to me," Howard said.

Howard prepared waffles at his home before coming to the ballpark. He might want to consider having the same breakfast on Saturday after blasting Nos. 16 and 17 -- one to left and one to right.

The Phillies' 20 runs were the most scored at Busch Stadium since it opened in 2006. The St. Louis staff was tattered to the point that second baseman Aaron Miles took the mound for mopup duty in the ninth.

Kendrick (6-2) went seven innings and allowed two runs (one earned) while getting the type of run support pitchers dream about. Kendrick's only problem after the nine-run fourth inning was deciding how aggressive he should be with his pitches.

"When you have a big lead, you don't want to mess around and walk them," Kendrick said. "But still, you don't want to lay balls in there for them. I'm not complaining. I love that lead. But for me, I have to focus a little harder."

The Phils were up, 4-1, when Kendrick ignited the nine-run inning with his double to left. A two-run single by Utley made it 6-1 and prompted La Russa to lift Wellemeyer. But it only got worse for the Cards after Ron Villone came out of the bullpen.

"They start having fun and everybody wants to go up there and be part of it," Manuel said.

Catcher Carlos Ruiz finished with four hits to lead a 21-hit attack. Howard had five RBIs and Ruiz added four.

Billy Wagner's big slump has come at a terrible time for the New York Mets.

The beleaguered closer coughed up his third consecutive save chance, this time wasting a splendid pitching performance by Johan Santana and allowing the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks to rally past New York, 5-4, in 10 innings yesterday.

"It's frustrating," Wagner said. "I stink right now."

Justin Upton doubled leading off the 10th against Aaron Heilman (0-3) and scored on Miguel Montero's sacrifice fly to help the Diamondbacks take two of three in the series.

Third baseman Augie Ojeda and shortstop Stephen Drew made diving plays in the bottom of the ninth to keep the score tied.

"We showed some tenacity all three games here, which was big for me," Arizona manager Bob Melvin said. "We haven't really showed a propensity to come back much this year in the fashion that we did last year."

After Santana struck out 10 in seven shutout innings, Wagner squandered a two-run lead in the ninth and screamed at himself several times while walking back to the dugout.

The lefthander also gave up a go-ahead homer to San Diego pinch-hitter Tony Clark in Sunday's 8-6 loss and a tying, three-run shot to Mark Reynolds on Wednesday night. The Mets recovered to win that one on Carlos Beltran's 13th-inning homer, ending a five-game skid.

"It's really not the team right now - it's all on me," Wagner said. "I'm not getting the job done."

Mets manager Willie Randolph thought Wagner's stuff looked typical yesterday, but the velocity on his fastball was down. The last time the All-Star reliever blew three save chances in a row was May 2000 when he squandered five straight for Houston.

The Mets fell three games below .500, matching their low-water mark for the season.

"We're in one of those bad ruts where the baseball gods are not good to you," Randolph said. "We've got to find a way."

Friday, June 13, 2008

This is Sad News,...

WASHINGTON — Tim Russert was big wherever he went — in politics, in television, in writing — and even in a suit.

Russert, the hard-hitting but big-hearted moderator of NBC's "Meet the Press," died at work Friday at age 58 of a reported heart attack.

Russert, who also was in charge of NBC News' Washington bureau, is survived by his wife, Maureen Orth, and his son, Luke.

A noticeably shaken Tom Brokaw made the announcement live from New York on the NBC network, saying his colleague collapsed and died early Friday afternoon in the network's bureau in Washington.

Brokaw said Russert had just returned from a trip to Italy with his wife and son to celebrate his son's graduation from Boston College. They reportedly were still in Italy at the time of his death.

"He has been a very familiar face on this network and throughout the world of political journalism as one of the premiere political analysts and journalists of his time," Brokaw said.

Russert was also known for his large stature, his love of his family and his affinity for his home town of Buffalo — and its NFL franchise, the Bills. Brokaw said Russert had just visited Buffalo last week to assist in moving his father to a new home. Russert's father, known as Big Russ, was the subject of one of Russert's best-selling books.Related

"I think I can invoke personal privilege to say that this news division will not be the same without his strong, clear voice. He'll be missed as he was loved — greatly," Brokaw said.

Russert had hosted "Meet the Press" since 1991, taking the seat from Garrick Utley. Russert also authored two best-sellers, including "Big Russ and Me," which focused on the relationship with his father, and the "Wisdom of Our Fathers."

Russert honed his hard-hitting interviewing style over the years, and became a make-or-break appearance for any major American politician, as well as must-see television for political observers, in and outside government.

He regularly interviewed the biggest names in domestic and international politics. He also moderated presidential debates, including at least three during the 2008 presidential campaign cycle. He was scheduled to host Sens. Joe Biden, D-Del., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., for the upcoming Sunday show.

The TrekMedic adds:

Say what you want about his political leanings on "Meet the Press," you hate to see someone go so young,....

Since then he has "received thousands and thousands of emails with lots of support", he says. "And thousands of these people want to donate to a legal fund to sue Al Gore."

Mr Coleman hopes court could be the venue to settle the debate over what he calls “the biggest scam in history” and expose global warming alarmism as "silly hype".

"I think it’s maybe our only alternative to just hunkering down and waiting it out," said the forecaster, who now works for a local station in San Diego, California.

He claims the mainstream media ignores what those sceptical of man-made global warming have to say while the educational community does not debate the issue.

"Without the media and the educational institutions, what resource do we have to counter these people? We are not going to be heard unless we can find a place to be heard and a court of law might be a place where we would get a fair hearing."Mr Coleman, who would like to see all proponents of global warming including those who sell carbon credits challenged, added:

"If the judge had a non-political scientific approach in reaching a decision we would win the lawsuit. It’s something that is in the works. I have no announcement to make about it now but numerous people are involved and it remains a valid possibility."

I contacted Mr Coleman in reference to a Houston Chronicle story that claimed another senior meteorologist, pioneering hurricane forecaster Professor William Gray, was being penalised for his anti-global warming views. (The original headline, Storm brewing for William Gray, has since been changed).

I wanted to see if Mr Coleman had heard of this happening elsewhere.

As it was, the Colorado State University, which was reported to be planning to suspend support for Professor Gray’s work because of his views on climate change, vigorously denied the story. Sandra Woods, dean of the University’s engineering department which oversees atmospheric sciences, described the information in the article as “false”, adding: "The assertion that Dr. Gray is being silenced or being forced out because of his views on global warming is completely inaccurate."

Mr Coleman said he did feel that expressing doubts about man-made global warming had become the preserve of older meteorologists less worried about a backlash.

He said he has spoken to several weather forecasters at US television networks who say that even though they share his doubts about climate change they are afraid to speak out for fear of losing their jobs.

"We old guys, we are the ones who are able to speak out more clearly on global warming because our retirements are in place and we don’t have to worry so much about the repercussions," said Mr Coleman. "An awful lot of younger guys I know of and have been in touch with, they agree with our position but for career reasons are unable to say anything. And I certainly can’t name them. But television weathermen who work for the networks, I know several of them who just can’t say anything. They feel that their entire position would be in jeopardy."

Mr Coleman predicts it will take "20 more years of weather data to totally wipe out the silliness". In the meantime he continues to argue that evidence of man-made global warming just isn’t there.

"It’s been 30 years since the whole global warming thing (began) and by this time the oceans should be rising and the ice caps should be pretty well melted, and none of that’s happening. Despite all the hype last year about the North polar ice cap melting away, it’s frozen up bigger than it’s been frozen up in 20 years at this moment. So, where in the heck’s the beef? Where’s the warming?"

It should be an interesting showdown if the sceptics get their day in court.Posted by Catherine Elsworth on 01 May 2008 at 08:59

The Trekmedic appends:Not exactly a hot topic on CeeNoNews, CeeBS, or MSMSNBC, huh? I wonder why,...?

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Just Another Day in Mutts-ville (Mighty Casey has Struck Out)

Encouraging wordsIf the struggling Mets are looking for a morale boost, they'd be better served not stopping by Billy Wagner's locker stall.

After the Padres finished humiliating the Mets in a four-game sweep they completed Sunday, it was brought to Wagner's attention that things may not get any easier with West-leading Arizona coming to Shea Stadium this week.

"Why would it?" Wagner said. "San Diego is not an upper-echelon team, and we just got swept by them."

Way to fire up the team, Billy.

One reason the Mets got swept was Wagner. He gave up a three-run homer in the eighth inning against pinch-hitter Tony Clark that led to the Mets' 8-6 loss on Sunday.

TOKYO — A man who police said "was tired of life" drove into a crowd of pedestrians Sunday and then went on a stabbing rampage in Tokyo's top electronics and video game district, killing seven people and wounding 10, authorities said.

The deadly lunchtime assault paralyzed the Akihabara neighborhood, which is wildly popular among the country's youth. The killings were the latest in a series of grisly knife attacks that have stoked fears of rising crime in Japan.

A 25-year-old man, Tomohiro Kato, was apprehended in the attack, authorities said.

"The suspect told police that he came to Akihabara to kill people," said Jiro Akaogi, a spokesman for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. "He said he was tired of life. He said he was sick of everything."

News reports said the man crashed a rented, two-ton truck into pedestrians, then jumped out of the truck and began stabbing the people he'd knocked down before turning on horrified onlookers.

The attacker grunted and roared as he slashed and stabbed at his victims on a street crowded with Sunday shoppers, reports said.

"He was screaming as he was stabbing people at random," a witness told NHK.

A witness told NHK the suspect dropped the knife after police threatened to shoot him. An amateur video filmed by a mobile phone showed policemen overpowering the bespectacled suspect.

Police confirmed seven deaths — six men and one woman — but they could not say whether the victims died from injuries from the truck or were stabbed to death.

At least 17 ambulances rushed to the scene, with TV footage showing rescue workers tending to victims in the street.

Another amateur video taken five minutes after the rampage showed shoppers helping the victims and a man screaming, "Ambulance, Ambulance!" according to NHK.

Akihabara district, known as Electric Town, is wildly popular with Japan's cyber-wise youth.

Once rare, stabbing attacks have become more frequent in Japan in recent years as violent crime has increased.

In March, one person was stabbed to death and at least seven others were hurt by a man who went on a slashing spree with two knives outside a shopping mall in eastern Japan.

In one of the worst attacks, a man with a history of mental illness burst into an elementary school in Japan in 2001 and killed eight children. The killer was executed in 2004.

Saturday, June 07, 2008

Pack Up the Circus Tents,...

Standing before a throng of supporters with American flags as her backdrop, Hillary Clinton did something Saturday that 17 months ago seemed unthinkable — she conceded defeat.

The former first lady, who as recently as Tuesday declared herself the strongest candidate, gave former rival Barack Obama an unqualified endorsement and pivoted from her role as determined foe to absolute ally. She suspended her historic bid for the White House, settling the dust following a grueling 17-month campaign.

Clinton repeatedly called on her supporters to unite behind the Illinois senator, casting the general election as a critical opportunity to shift course after seven years with a Republican president. She acknowledged the hard-fought and sometimes-bitter Democratic primary battle, but assured her voters that Obama has proved himself to the country.

“I’ve had a front-row seat to his candidacy, and I have seen his strength and determination, his grace and his grit,” she said.

“We all know this has been a tough fight, but the Democratic Party is a family … we may have started on separate journeys but today our paths have merged, and we’re all heading toward the same destination.”

Clinton kicked off her concession by directly thanking supporters who poured their “heart and hopes” into her campaign.

“Well this isn’t exactly the party I’d planned, but I sure like the company,” Clinton said at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., her husband Bill and daughter Chelsea by her side.

Within minutes she announced that she was bowing out of the race.

“The way to continue our fight now … is to take our energy, our passion, our strength and do all that we can to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States,” she said to cheering supporters. “Today as I suspend my campaign, I congratulate him on the victory he has won, and the extraordinary race he has run. I endorse him and throw my full support behind him.”

Obama later issued a statement saying he is “thrilled and honored” to have Clinton’s support.

“But more than that, I honor her today for the valiant and historic campaign she has run,” he said. “She shattered barriers on behalf of my daughters and women everywhere, who now know that there are no limits to their dreams … Our party and our country are stronger because of the work she has done throughout her life, and I’m a better candidate for having had the privilege of competing with her in this campaign.

“No one knows better than Senator Clinton how desperately America and the American people need change, and I know she will continue to be in the forefront of that battle this fall and for years to come. “

Clinton was under pressure to send a strong signal to the 18 million voters who supported her in the marathon 50-state primary that it’s time to unite behind the presumptive nominee.

Obama secured the 2,118 delegates needed to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday after primaries in South Dakota and Montana. He planned to spend the weekend at home in Chicago.

Clinton on Tuesday gave little indication she was ready to bow out of the race. She congratulated Obama for running an “extraordinary” race but did not acknowledge at the time his delegate majority.

But on Saturday she paused to urge the audience to appreciate the historic nature of the race itself, which pitted the first serious female candidate for president against the most viable black candidate.

“Together, Senator Obama and I achieved milestones,” she said.

She said that even though her campaign was not successful, she paved the way for a woman to some day win the White House.

“Though we weren’t able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you it’s got about 18 million cracks in it,” she said. “The path will be a little easier next time.”

Clinton began the race as the undisputed front-runner in January 2007. But she saw her march to the nomination derailed a year later after being swamped by Obama in Iowa’s lead-off caucuses.

The last major candidate of the 2008 primary campaign to fall, Clinton persevered by staying defiant when her back was against the wall.

In the critical contests she had to win to stay in the race, she won. She had a strong showing in the March 4 primaries, and then pulled off a victory in Pennsylvania April 22. The victories were used to raise doubts about Obama’s chances against presumptive GOP nominee John McCain, even as his delegate lead over Clinton stayed imposing.

Left on the table is whether Clinton will be considered as Obama’s vice presidential pick.

The two had a face-to-face meeting Thursday evening at the Washington home of a Senate colleague, California Democrat Dianne Feinstein, where they discussed the campaign to come. They spoke alone for about an hour. Both were laughing when they finished.

Clinton was expected to campaign for Obama and to help with fundraising while seeking his assistance in retiring her $30 million campaign debt.

The New York senator has told colleagues she would be interested in joining Obama as his running mate.

Following the speech Saturday, she made her way through the crowd of supporters, shaking hands and signing autographs, telling one supporter, ‘Don’t worry, I’ll be back.’

Also unanswered is how passionately Clinton’s supporters will file in behind Obama. Clinton was met with ear-splitting cheers when he began her address, but the crowd response became progressively more tepid as she spoke about driving Obama to victory in November.

Polls show the general election race against presumptive GOP nominee John McCain is still tight. The latest national Gallup tracking poll shows Obama leading McCain by just 1 point.

Clinton spent much of Friday working on her concession speech with campaign manager Maggie Williams, media adviser Mandy Grunwald and strategist Mark Penn.

By suspending her campaign, Clinton would retain nominal control of her delegates and could continue to raise money to pay off campaign debts.

A party at her Washington home on Friday was intended as a way to thank and bid farewell to campaign staff.

FOX News’ Major Garrett and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The TrekMedic giddily adds:

There's a rumor running rampant (and started by the TrekMedic) that Obama's first response to the Shrill One was "how does crow taste, bitch?"

Five years after SEPTA's board voted to suspend all trackless trolley service for one year, the first of 38 new electric trolleys are gliding through the streets of Northeast Philadelphia. Their return revives an 85-year-old transportation tradition in the city.

Quiet and clean and with a new ability to maneuver "off wire," the trackless trolleys have another advantage over buses these days: With the cost of diesel fuel skyrocketing, they're cheaper to run.

Trackless trolleys cost $2.54 per mile to operate and maintain, compared with $2.76 for diesel buses, according to SEPTA.

Nonetheless, SEPTA has stuck to its 2006 decision - made over Philadelphia's objections - not to buy 23 more trackless trolleys to restore service in South Philadelphia. SEPTA managers say they prefer buses, which are cheaper to buy and more flexible to run.

"For an authority of this size, which has about 1,300 buses, the capital costs and upkeep costs for a small fleet of trolleys - it simply isn't practical," SEPTA spokesman Richard Maloney said. And he said the cost of electricity, capped until 2010, could rise after that and increase trolley expenses.

So the "temporary" removal of trackless trolleys from South Philadelphia seems more permanent than ever. So does the "temporary" elimination of tracked trolleys 16 years ago from Route 23 (Chestnut Hill to South Philadelphia) even though the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is installing new trolley tracks and overhead wires as part of its $17 million reconstruction of Germantown Avenue.

While electric trolleys grow increasingly popular in such cities as Seattle, San Francisco, Boston and Toronto, SEPTA's decision rankles city and environmental leaders here.

"With fuel costs where they are, we think it would be worthwhile for SEPTA to revisit its position," said Stephen Buckley, director of policy and planning in Mayor Nutter's Office of Transportation and Utilities. He said the mayor's people would meet with SEPTA officials this week about the trolleys.

"It was a good idea back then [2006], and it's an even better idea now," said Joseph Minott, executive director of the Clean Air Council. "Environmentally, it's a lot more efficient to get your energy from a central power plant than from diesel engines in every bus. It's cleaner - there are no emissions in the community. They tend to be very quiet. . . . And with fuel costs what they are, it makes more sense than ever.

"SEPTA should move forward to renegotiate for the purchase of those vehicles."

When SEPTA's board voted in 2003 to sideline trackless trolleys for a year, the agency was paying $12.8 million a year for diesel. For the new fiscal year that starts July 1, it is budgeting $57.1 million for fuel.

"Trolleys are a win-win," said Susan Patrone of the Passyunk Square Civic Association in South Philadelphia. "And the infrastructure is there. The lines are still there, the poles are still there, but they're being allowed to deteriorate."

In 2006, SEPTA agreed to buy the 38 trolleys for Northeast Philadelphia for $43.5 million (including $34.8 million in federal funding). If it didn't, it might have had to refund millions spent by the Federal Transit Administration to update overhead power wires and build a new trolley garage.

But with its perennial budget shortfalls, SEPTA's board voted against spending $20 million for 23 trolleys for South Philadelphia.

The new trolleys are expected to be on the streets by midsummer on Routes 59, 66 and 75. So far, 17 have arrived.

A recent ride on one of the Route 59 trolleys was a quiet, smooth trip from the Margaret-Orthodox Station to Bells Corner. The loudest noise was the ventilation system.

Operator Gerald Schneider said passengers sometimes complained that the vehicle had broken down because they didn't hear engine noise.

To maneuver around construction projects or accidents, the trolleys have diesel-powered generators that can provide electricity when the trolley arms aren't in contact with the overhead wires.

And a "regenerative braking" system returns electricity to the power lines when the trolley brakes.

Trolleys, which cost more than twice as much to buy as buses (about $1 million vs. $400,000), last 50 percent longer - 18 years rather than 12.

Other transit systems with trackless trolleys are more enthusiastic about them than SEPTA has been.

In Seattle, "whenever there is talk about putting buses on trolley routes, people start to reach for their guns," said Jim Boon, manager of fleet maintenance for King County Metro.

The agency has 159 trackless trolleys in a fleet that includes 1,300 buses, and Boon said the agency was "committed to trolleys. They're 100 percent green. There's no thought about replacing the trolleys."

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority introduced 28 trackless trolleys in Boston four years ago, and runs 32 "dual mode" trackless trolleys that operate off-wire with diesel generators for part of their routes. The agency has 1,040 buses.

"The MBTA has been pleased with the performance" of the trolleys, spokesman Joe Pesaturo said.

With buses, SEPTA officials said, routes can be altered without the need for overhead wires, and detours are no problem.

SEPTA is building its future on electric-diesel buses designed to use 25 percent less diesel and create less pollution than the buses they will replace. SEPTA has 32 in service now and estimates the operation and maintenance cost at $2.60 per mile.

SEPTA is spending $212.4 million to buy 400 of the hybrid buses over the next four years. The hybrids cost about $160,000 more than a standard bus, an amount SEPTA hopes to largely recover in reduced fuel and maintenance costs. The first of the new hybrids is to arrive by August.

Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead!

In the arena that will be filled with GOP faithful in just a few months at the Republican Convention, Barack Obama will tell several thousand on hand an significantly more watching on television that after 54 contests, the primary season has come to an end. “Tonight, I can stand before you and say that I will be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States,” he is expected to say according to prepared remarks sent out to reporters.

On the hour-long flight from Chicago to St. Paul, Minnesota, Senior Advisor David Axelrod told the press that while the historic nomination has yet to sink in for him, Barack Obama is already thinking about what’s next. “He’s already thinking about where we go from here. But he’s obviously very happy.” Axelrod noted that while tonight’s a time to celebrate their hard-fought win, “We’re gonna wake up tomorrow and we’re gonna start all over again because we’re not in this you know simply to break a barrier, we’re in this to try and change a country.”

Staffers refused to talk about Hillary Clinton as a potential running mate - the line repeated to reporters on the campaign plane: “We don’t have a short list or a long list. We’re coming here tonight to finish the process of winning this nomination, then we’ll turn our attention to the notion of who the running mate will be,” Axelrod explained.

But Barack Obama will heap praise on his soon to be former rival at his victory rally. “Senator Hillary Clinton has made history in this campaign not just because she’s a woman who has done what no woman has done before, but because she’s a leader who inspires millions of Americans with her strength, her courage, and her commitment to the causes that brought us here tonight….You can rest assured that when we finally win the battle for universal health care in this country, she will be central to that victory. When we transform our energy policy and lift our children out of poverty, it will be because she worked to help make it happen. Our party and our country are better off because of her, and I am a better candidate for having had the honor to compete with Hillary Rodham Clinton,” he will say according to prepared remarks.

Party unity, after all, will be needed to beat John McCain this fall. “At the end of the day, we aren’t the reason you came out and waited in lines that stretched block after block to make your voice heard. You didn’t do that because of me or Senator Clinton or anyone else. You did it because you know in your hearts that at this moment – a moment that will define a generation – we cannot afford to keep doing what we’ve been doing. We owe our children a better future. We owe our country a better future. And for all those who dream of that future tonight, I say – let us begin the work together. Let us unite in common effort to chart a new course for America.”

Hillary Clinton conceded nothing tonight at Baruch College in New York - not the delegate count, where her rival Barack Obama passed the threshold of 2,118 delegates required to win the nomination, and certainly not the Democratic primary.

Instead, Clinton thanked the voters of South Dakota for delivering a final win in her 2008 campaign, and told supporters she’d continue fighting for her beliefs and for theirs — from instituting universal health care to ending the war in Iraq.

To that end, she said she’s going ahead with her campaign — but with an eye toward party unity. “In the coming days, I’ll be consulting with supporters and party leaders to determine how to move forward with the best interests of our party and our country guiding my way,” she said.

With Obama clinching the requisite number of delegates tonight, moving forward for Clinton would mean convincing delegates currently pledged to him to switch sides at the convention — which some Democrats say would be a blow to the Party. But Clinton said she has Democrats’ interests at heart. “I am committed to uniting our Party, so we move forward, stronger and more ready than ever to take back the White House this November,” she said.

“Now the question is, where do we go from here, and given how far we’ve come and where we need to go as a party, it’s a question I don’t take lightly,” Clinton told the crowd. “This has been a long campaign, and I will be making no decisions tonight.”

She asked supporters to help her decide by submitting suggestions on her website — where, conveniently, they can donate to the campaign. Those in the room seemed to be in agreement on where to go next — chanting “Denver! Denver!” to urge the New York Senator to take her fight to the convention in August.

But first, Clinton congratulated Obama for running what she called an extraordinary race. “It has been an honor to contest these primaries with him, just as it is an honor to call him my friend. And tonight, I would like all of us to take a moment to recognize him and his supporters for all they have accomplished,” she said.

Clinton seemed to acknowledge that many Americans are wondering what’s keeping her from dropping out now that all the votes are cast and her opponent has clinched the delegate count — but she had no good answers. “I understand that a lot of people are asking, what does Hillary want? What does she want? Well, I want what I have always fought for in this whole campaign,” Clinton said. “I want to end the war in Iraq. I want to turn this economy around. I want health care for every American. I want every child to live up to his or her God-given potential, and I want the nearly 18 million Americans who voted for me to be respected, to be heard and no longer to be invisible.”

The New York Senator leveled no attacks on Obama, but spent a significant amount of time discussing the need for universal health care, a frequent contrast point over the course of the campaign. “I have been working on this issue not just for the past 16 months, but for 16 years. And it is a fight I will continue until every single American has health insurance. No exceptions and no excuses,” she said.

In doing so, Clinton hinted at one possible reason she’s still around — leverage. When she inevitably sits down with Obama, she can use her delegates and her constituency to try to convince Obama to adopt her mandated coverage plan, which she’s argued is the only way to get to universal coverage.

Obama mentioned that inevitable sit-down when the two Democrats finally spoke on this final election night (poor cell phone reception in the gym where Clinton held her event led to a few voice mail messages being exchanged, and one aborted conversation that was cut off due to lack of service). While Clinton did not set a time for the meeting, both candidates are in Washington on Wednesday.

In the end, Clinton said that even though the primary contest was a grueling one, democracy and the Democrats won by her staying in the race. “A record thirty-five million people voted in this primary, from every state, red, blue, purple, people of every age, faith, color and walk of life. And we have brought so many people into the Democratic Party and created enthusiasm among those we seek to serve.”

“While this primary was long, I am so proud we stayed the course together because we stood our ground, it meant that every single United States citizen had a chance to make his or her voice heard.” In wrapping up the first long phase of the primary campaign, Clinton made it clear it’s not the last time we’ve heard her voice; most immediately, we’ll hear it on Wednesday morning as she addresses an AIPAC conference in Washington just minutes after Obama. And superdelegates will hear a lot of it tomorrow, as Clinton is set to hole up in her Washington home making phone calls all day long.